Calling attention to the biodiversity of Amazonia, this paper discusses the problems facing natural history collections in Latin America. Three issues are discussed: incomplete cataloguing and inadequate preservation; lack of multi-disciplinary projects; and exhibits that jeopardize unique specimens and artifacts. It is emphasized that, because Europe holds superb South American collections, a way to commemorate the joining of the worlds in the spirit of United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development (UNCED) would be to design a European-Latin American program that combines both research on collections and technology transfer, to save important collections in South America.